Two years ago Steve Bruce was left reeling after a squad dubbed the best in Hull City's history surrendered their place in the Premier League.

An offer to fall on his sword was quickly rejected by the club's board, leaving Bruce to plot an instant return to the top flight. Promotion would follow 12 months later through the Championship play-off final and now the Tigers must aim to repeat history after seeing the good work undone with another relegation.

KEEP A CORE INTACT

The summer of 2015 was a sobering and uncertain spell for City. Prized assets James Chester, Robbie Brady and Tom Ince were sold, as were the want-away strike pairing of Nikica Jelavic and Dame N'Doye.

Free agents Liam Rosenior, Paul McShane, Stephen Quinn and Steve Harper also headed for the exit door. The casualties of relegation were inevitable but City successfully retained the spine of a talented squad.

Players such as Allan McGregor, Michael Dawson, Curtis Davies, Andy Robertson, Ahmed Elmohamady, Tom Huddlestone, Mo Diame and Abel Hernandez gave City a strength beyond most of their rivals in the Championship, while Jake Livermore and Robert Snodgrass returned to further bolster the ranks.

Hull City's Michael Dawson and Curtis Davies

Sales cannot be avoided this summer, with Player of the Season Harry Maguire almost certain to leave, but City can ill-afford to start over.

Resisting moves for the likes of Eldin Jakupovic, Sam Clucas, Josh Tymon and Huddlestone is imperative if the Tigers are going to start next season with optimism.

INJECTION OF FRESH BLOOD NEEDED

City fans were made to wait until July 27 for the first signing ahead of the 2015-16 season and history says it was worth the wait. Clucas, who was joined by free transfer Ryan Taylor, would become a huge figure in the promotion campaign after joining from Chesterfield in a £1.3m deal.

Moses Odubajo, a £3.5m signing from Brentford, was another hugely important recruit to freshen up a squad jaded by relegation.

City will have to do even more this summer but the model of 2015 can be replicated.

City need experience, a splash of youth and, most importantly, emerging figures, such as Clucas and Odubajo, capable of driving forward a promotion push. Even on a budget, like two years ago, the gems are out there.

STRONG MANAGEMENT

Arguably the most important figure in City's last promotion campaign was Bruce.

The wily, old boss had already climbed out of the Championship three times as a manager and his desire to right the wrongs of relegation were crucial in City coming good again.

The season was not always pretty, with deep troughs at places like Leeds, Rotherham and Preston, but there was a pragmatism about Bruce that dragged City over the finish line at Wembley.

Hull City manager Steve Bruce celebrates with Alex Bruce after the Championship Play-Off Final at Wembley Stadium, London.

Finding a candidate to repeat that feat will be far from straightforward.

There is no shortage of promotion-winners in the list of bookmakers' favourites, such as Nigel Adkins, Paul Lambert, Aitor Karanka and Alex Neil, but it will take a strong motivator to pick up a deflated group in pre-season. The number of clubs bouncing straight back is certainly dwindling.

FIND A GOALSCORER

Having a 20-goal striker is not a must, as Huddersfield Town have just proved, but it's certainly a big help.

That man for City two years ago was Abel Hernandez.

Although most had expected the Uruguay international to move on, just as they do this summer, he stuck around to carry the goalscoring burden almost single-handedly. Hernandez plundered 23 goals, with Mo Diame's 10 the next best contribution.

A likely separation in the coming weeks and months will leave City looking beyond Hernandez so there will surely be a vacancy for a new goalscoring hope. Or two.

There is no obvious candidate in the current ranks so the Tigers will have to invest wisely. Finding a striker capable of breaking up Championship defences is almost as big a priority as finding the right successor to Marco Silva.

DISPEL THE NEGATIVITY

Amid the relegation hangover that has City nursing a thick head at present, it is worth remembering how bleak life at the KCOM Stadium felt two years ago.

Few were predicting a promotion assault, with some pundits predicting a relegation fight was just as likely.

Bruce would often bemoan the "doom and gloom" hanging over City that summer but the tide was soon turned by results, recruitment and player retention.

Fans at the KCOM stadium, Hull

By October and November, when the wins came thick and fast, life was definitely looking up. City have an arguably greater task in whipping up optimism two years on.

Divisions have been entrenched and attendances are expected to fall further. Supporters need to be engaged by the club they follow and given reason to forget the politics.

Bruce and Silva were both successful on that front. The club's fourth manager inside a year has to be capable of the same.